To all you iDOLM@STER producers and fans out there, this is big news for you! This year, we’ll be having 5 lovely members from THE iDOLM@STER cast performing at the I LOVE ANISONG concert at Anime Festival Asia 2014!
So what is THE iDOLM@STER?
THE iDOLM@STER (henceforth abbreviated as iM@S) originated from an arcade game, which the player takes on the role of a producer at the talent agency 765 Production (henceforth abbreviated as 765 Pro). The goal is to successfully guide their charges to stardom. Gameplay involves managing one or several idols and partaking in various activities, such as dance practice and auditions.
Since its inception in 2005, the iM@S franchise has grown significantly and spawned many games on multiple platforms, printed media, music CDs, anime, drama CDs and radio shows.
The 2011 A-1 Pictures anime Ending themeA highly successful anime run of iM@S in 2011 by A-1 pictures, followed by the 2014 animated movie THE IDOLM@STER MOVIE 輝きの向こう側へ (Kagayaki no mukougawa e/To the other side of the sparkle) further propelled the franchise to the booming success it is right now. Also, the upcoming iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls anime is due this January 2015, so be sure to look out for it!
Without further ado, let’s introduce each of the iM@S members who are coming down to AFA2014!
Asami Imai (Chihaya Kisaragi )
Asami Imai, a veteran seiyuu who voices everyone’s favourite songstress, Chihaya from 765 Pro! Chihaya had been a mainstay of The Idolm@ster series ever since its inception back in 2005, appearing in a staggering number of print media, games, anime and the like. She is a talented vocalist and has a cool demeanor, but she actually has difficulty expressing her emotions or deciding what to say at times.
Asami Imai has definitely established herself as a seiyuu, given her long career and myriad roles dating back all the way to 1999, when she did voice work for the drama CD of Toki no Daichi. Her stand out roles (apart from Chihaya) include Makise Kurisu from Steins; Gate, Tsubaki Yayoi from the Blazblue series and Ayumi Shinozaki from the Corpse Party series. Also of note, she has produced works in a collaboration unit called Artery Vein, with another new guest at this year’s AFA, Eri Kitamura.
Yumi Hara (Takane Shijou)
Introduced in the PSP game series THE iDOLM@STER SP as a rival character from 961 Production, Takane Shijou (called “The Silver Queen” by her fans in game) later goes on to be part of 765 Pro as of the events of iM@S 2nd vision. Takane is an elegant character, who also happens to be an exceptional vocalist in the iM@S story.
Yumi Hara had a busy schedule in recent years, having released numerous singles and appeared on a variety of radio programs. She also had a fair share of notable roles in various games and anime, such as Yuko Kanoe from Tasogare Otome X Amnesia and Marielle from Log Horizon.
Manami Numakura (Hibiki Ganaha)
Likewise, the bubbly Okinawan native Hibiki Ganaha was also introduced as part of 961 Pro but is part of 765 Pro as of the events of iM@S 2nd vision. Her love for animals has lead to her keeping a variety of pets, the most prolific of which is Hamuzou, which has appeared many times during the 2011 iM@S anime.
Manami Numakura has been doing voice acting work for a fair number of years, landing her first TV anime role in 2009. Since then she has gone on to work on a significant number of iM@S related media, especially involving the radio programs. Her more recent anime roles are those of Machi Tokiwa in Hanayamata and Sakura Aoi in Rail Wars!.
Ayaka Ohashi (Uzuki Shimamura)
Introduced in the game THE iDOLM@STER Cinderella Girls (website in Japanese only) on Mobage, the social networking games platform. Uzuki Shimamura is an average but hardworking and friendly girl who’s friends with fellow Cinderalla Girls newcomers Mio Honda and Rin Shibuya. Voiced by Ayaka Ohashi, she had several solo recordings ever since her introduction in Cinderella Girls.
For those of you who came down to AFA 2013, you might recognise Ayaka Ohashi as she made an appearance at the Horipro booth as well as the main stage. She is back again this year with more experience and more fans along with it I’m sure, so it’ll be a good opportunity for people who don’t know her to start taking notice. After all, she’s landed a few major roles in anime such as the summer 2014 anime Sabagebu’s main heroine, Momoka Sonokawa, as well as Akame ga Kiru’s Kurome.
Azusa Tadokoro (Shizuka Mogami)
Making her first appearance in THE iDOLM@STER Million live! (website in Japanese only), a game released on the social network gaming platform Gree. Shizuka Mogami is a hot-blooded and slightly harsh character, but is a bit of a tsundere who cares a lot for her friends.
She had a guest appearance at Horipro’s booth at AFA 2013 along with Ayaka Ohashi, so Azusa fans can rejoice as she makes her second appearance, this time as part of the iM@S troupe. Her latest anime voice roles are those of Hiro, the trap maid from Himegoto, as well as Murasaki Endoyama in Tokyo ESP.
This is the very first time that the iM@S has made their presence in AFA. Bear witness to the spectacle of the iM@S idols being brought to life by their seiyuu for the very first time in Singapore, it’s sure to be sensational.
They will be performing on 06 Dec 2014 with LiSA, fripSide and Yanaginagi. So be sure to catch them this December at AFA2014! In addition to performance at I LOVE ANISONG concert stage, the iM@S members will be making stage appearances during AFA!
Ticketing for the early bird package starts on 01 Oct 2014 (Wed) 12pm onwards, additional ticketing information can be found here. More details regarding their stage event will come soon. So be sure to like and follow AFA Channel (Facebook & Twitter) and Anime Festival Asia (Facebook & Twitter) to get the latest updates on all things AFA!
Lastly, if you haven’t caught the full line up reveal trailer for the I love Anisong concert, here it is… In all its glory.
The post [I LOVE ANISONG] Introducing the 5 THE iDOLM@STER Members Performing at AFA2014 appeared first on AFA Channel!.